Cave In
by Caranath
Summary: what starts off as a simple recovery operation turns dangerous when Joe finds himself trapped with no way out
1. Chapter 1

**A/n: **_ just a little something to tide you over while I work on Dear Diary. Don't worry, that is coming along nicely. promise . _

**Cave In**

Joe Hardy frowned as he poured over the map in his lap. He would glance occasionally up, searching for the elusive turn off he and his brother had been instructed to travel in order to retrieve the package.

'Package' was a euphemism. But the FBI tended to be fond of understating things. "It's got to be around here somewhere. Are you sure you didn't miss anything?" he asked Frank, who was driving slowly along the deserted road. Frank just shook his head and said "No way I could have missed anything. It would be faster if we got out and walked."

Joe chuckled at that before suddenly sitting straight up and yelping " THERE! That must be it!"

'It' was a so-overgrown-if-you-sneezed-you-missed-it driveway. It took a big stretch of the imagination to call it a road. Frank squealed the tires he took the turn so fast. The road was bumpy and rutted badly. Joe worried about the suspension in the SUV, declaring he was not going to waste a beautiful spring Saturday fiddling with car repairs. Frank just looked at him and said "Wanna turn around?"

Joe hastily assured his brother he was all in and his butt could stand a few bounces. Frank said nothing else but slowed down even more if such a thing were possible, as the road had all but disappeared by this point and he was driving by feel and the typewritten instructions that had been delivered anonymously which had stated that they were to drive 2.5 miles before reaching their destination. Shortly before that distance had been reached, Joe pointed ahead and said "Is that a fence? Here, in the middle of friggin' nowhere?"

It was indeed a fence, dilapidated and useless for keeping anything in.. or out. A small sign, faded and barely legible, proclaimed this to be the property of the Frisk Mining Group and trespassers would be prosecuted. "Bastard has one helluva sense of humor, dontya think?" the blond brother asked the darker one. "Let's just get what we came here for" the older man said grimly.

The siblings left the SUV and proceeded on foot. They could see the entrance to the old mine and knew without question that the 'package' was within. Just how far within, was uncertain. Frank swallowed uneasily. He had never been comfortable in caves. To his mind, a mine shaft was no different. Joe, sensing the subtle change in his brother's demeanor, put a hand on his shoulder, asking quietly "Want me to take this?"

Frank was about to say he could handle it when Joe said "Maybe you _should _wait out here. Could be a trap. I'd really prefer to not get ambushed. If you wait out here you can keep an eye out for things." Frank was not about to let a little claustrophobia interfere with the job, but Joe's suggestion had merit. Still he tried to demur but Joe said "Look, chances are I won't have to go very far in anyway and we will be within shouting distance of each other."

Frank allowed himself to be persuaded. "Got a flashlight?" he asked. "and the key?" referring to the small key that had accompanied the note that had brought them to this place. "In the car's emergency kit there should be a flashlight. I'll go get it."

Joe soon returned with a Mag light that could easily double as a truncheon if needed. Frank once again offered to accompany his brother but was again dissuaded. "I got it, Bro." and with that, he took off into the gloom.

The entrance to the mine was dark and spooky. Even Joe had to suppress a shudder and he fervently hoped no bats, bears or mountain lions had moved in. The Mag light cut a bright swath of light and he was able to easily follow the tunnel. It was a straight shot to what he figured was the main shaft entrance. It took him only a few minutes to get to the large opening, which was littered with abandoned mining equipment. A sudden noise in a shadowy corner grabbed his attention.

"Danny?" Joe called out softly, looking towards the shadows. "It's okay, buddy. I'm not here to hurt you. I'm here to take you home." There was no reply so Joe moved closer, slowly. He kept the flashlight beam angled towards the ground but began to sweep the light back and forth until he found a small figure huddled against the very back of the room. Joe stopped where he was, knowing the young boy was scared out of his mind and had no reason to trust his words. He knelt down and angled the flashlight so that it illuminated his own face. " Hey, Danny. My name is Joe. Your dad asked me and my brother Frank to come get you." still no reply, but the small figure looked steadily at him, eyes large and fearful.

Joe stood up and started towards the boy, who immediately scuttled as far away as he could, along the stone wall. Joe instantly stood stock still and waited for Danny to stop moving. By now he could see the long length of heavy duty chain that was securing the boy by one leg to a the wall. Well that explained the key that came with the note. (W_eirdest kidnapping ever, I swear. What kind of kidnapper provides the keys to the restraints?_)

Outside Frank was pacing nervously in front of the mine's entrance. He was second guessing his choice to stay out in the open and was debating the merits of following his brother when his cell phone rang. Caller ID proclaimed that his father was on the other end. "Hey Dad. Joe's in there now getting him. Would you believe it's a mine shaft that belongs to Frisk? Joe was most displeased at the irony." he listened a few moments while his father relayed the news to his client, Daniel Frisk Sr. Fenton came back with a tinge of alarm coloring his voice. "Son, be very careful. Frisk says the mine was shut down several years ago because it was unstable. You better get the boy out fast!"

Frank told his father he was on his way into the shaft now to hurry his brother along. "I'll call you back as soon as we have him outside." Frank stuffed his cell back into his jacket pocket and steeled himself for the journey. Frank did not consider himself a coward, but the added knowledge he has just acquired did nothing for his mental well being. Nevertheless he knew he had to get in there and warn his brother of the danger.

Frank's timing was, depending on how you looked at it, impeccable.. or lousy. He had no sooner gone a dozen steps into the shaft when a great rumbling sound shuddered through his bones, followed immediately by the ceiling caving in directly in front of him. Frank was thrown backward by the blast of falling debris and his last thought was of his brother as he cracked his head against the rock and was rendered unconscious.

**A/n: **_I may prefer Joe whumping but that does not mean Frank will always get off scott free..._


	2. Chapter 2

**A/n: **_ Hmm I seem to be hang problems here. guess you can only have 15 documents in the manager at any one time.. so I must be doing something wrong when it comes to adding chapters..._

**Chapter 2**

It was some time later before Frank grew aware of his surroundings. Groaning at the movement, he gingerly felt the back of his head and winced when he saw the blood on his fingertips. He was just inside the entrance to the mine and could see the setting sun so he realized quickly that he had been out cold for quite a while. Scrambling as quickly to his feet as his concussion would allow, he faced the now completely blocked tunnel that his younger brother had gone down. "Joe!" he shouted as loud as he could and then immediately regretted it. The pain behind his eyes exploded and he grew dizzy, staggering against the rotting timber that had once been used to shore up the rock. He also realized he was having a hard time breathing and surmised he had cracked a rib or two. Ever the pragmatic brother, Frank soon accepted the fact that he was in no shape to affect a rescue by himself and headed out into the open where he knew the phone signal would not be blocked.

He had no sooner gotten his hands on his cell phone when it rang shrilly in his hand, startling him. "Dad! It caved the minute I walked in there. Joe and the kid are still in the mine!" he spoke breathlessly, not even giving his father a chance to speak. Fenton's voice cut through the haze beginning to surround the elder son as he sharply asked if Frank had been injured.

"Think I busted a rib and I am pretty sure I have a concussion. I must have been unconscious for hours. We have to get Joe out of there!" Frank's voice was strident as he began to panic over the possible fate of his brother. Again, Fenton's voice, firm yet colored with concern, provided an anchor and Frank strove to calm himself and listen to his father's instructions. "Son I want you to go back to the SUV and stay put. We already have rescue crews on the way. Frisk and I will be there in less than an hour. When we hadn't heard from you right away we decided to meet you there. Leave the headlights on so the rescue team can find you in the dark." Fenton paused, waiting for Frank to acknowledge the orders.

Frank did so, but not before protesting he could at least begin to clear away the rocks. Fenton immediately refused, saying that if he moved the wrong rock he'd start another cave in. It was best to let the experts handle it. Frank reluctantly conceded the wisdom of that but was still unhappy at the thought of not being able to help find his brother and a terrified young boy.

By the time he made it back to the SUV the sun had completely set. Frank rummaged around the emergency kit but found only some emergency flares. He would have liked to have found another flashlight but was grateful that Joe at least had a means of illumination. He did find some aspirin in the first aid kit and a small bottle of water so he eagerly swallowed them, hoping they would mitigate his pounding headache. In the distance he though the heard sirens, so he lit one of the flares and tossed it into the air, hoping it would be seen by the approaching emergency crews. His bet paid off and within minutes there were several vehicles pulling up beside him.

One of the rescue workers was a certified EMT so Frank soon found himself being examined and questioned simultaneously. It didn't take long to tell the man in charge, a grizzled gentleman with iron grey hair and a commanding presence named Philips, what little he knew. He was still perched on the back of the ambulance by the time his father and Frisk showed up.

Fenton took about 15 seconds to assure himself that Frank was not seriously injured before concentrating on getting his other son as well as Danny out of the mine. Frisk Senior had brought along a copy of the mine's schematics which noted all the secondary shafts and alternate entrances. Philips, Frisk and Fenton huddled over the schematics, but without knowing exactly where the missing were holed up, there was no way to determine which alternate access point was the most logical one to use.

Frank was starting to panic between the shock of his injuries, as well as the fact that he thought they were taking way too long to _do_ something. Everyone was standing around casually; not a single one had any sense of urgency at all. This incensed Frank and he angrily threw off the EMT's attempt to retrain him and stalked over to the three older men and demanded to know why they hadn;'t started digging yet.

Philips did not look pleased at the interruption as he growled a reply "Don't be stupid. We go barging in there like a crash of rhinos and the rest of the mine will collapse killing everyone inside!" Fenton tried to calm his agitated son and led him away from the strategy session. " Frank, you have to calm down. These people are experts and they are well aware of the dangers Joe and Danny may be in. And only they know the best, fastest and safest way to get to them. Let them do their jobs, okay?"

Frank wasn't buying it. "Son" Fenton sighed. "Joe is a big boy now. He can take care of himself. Trust that he will come out of this in one piece." Even after all this time Frank still had a hard time letting go of the image of the scatterbrained kid brother who always needed saving. He also had a hard time sitting by the sidelines. Truth be told, Fenton wasn't exactly zen-like himself. He wanted nothing more than to be in the thick of it helping to move boulders out of the way and get his son out ASAP. But he conceded the wisdom of allowing the experts to set the pace and rules.

Joe was still trying to convince Danny he was a good guy and not his kidnapper. He squatted down where he was, bringing his face to eye level with the boy. He spoke in a low, friendly tone of voice as he talked about how Danny's father was worried sick about him and really wanted him to come home right away. "You wouldn't want to keep your dad waiting, would you?" Danny almost, but not quite, shook his head no at the question. Eh, it was a start as far as Joe was concerned. He took that near movement as a sign it was safe to get closer. He stood up and walked very slowly over to the boy, who cringed, but didn't try and get away this time. Joe leaned his back against the rough stone of the shaft's wall and slid down, ending up with his knees bent almost to his chest. He sat there, not moving towards the child at all, still making small talk. "I met your older sister. She's freaked out too. Bit of a Drama Queen, though, always bursting into tears. Just like a girl, huh?"

_AhHAH_.. that was the merest twitch of a smile if ever Joe saw one. "I don't have a big sister, just a big brother. But he's a pain, too. Always bossing me around and stuff. Don't you hate it when they act like that?"

Definite nod this time. Joe decided that he could up the ante. "So, Danny, I have this key in my pocket. What say we try and figure out what it belongs to, huh? Wanna get rid of this nasty old thing?" Joe lightly grasped the chain and rattled it. In response, Danny moved his leg so that the lock could clearly be seen. Joe wasted no time at all unlocking it and Danny immediately took the cuff and threw it as hard as his little 9 year old body could. It made a satisfying clank against the far wall.

"Feel better?" Joe asked sympathetically. He knew what it was like being chained up. Wasn't pleasant. "What say you and I get out of here. It's a long drive back to your dad and I could really use a burger and fries." Joe thought he might have heard a small 'uh huh' so he stood up and reached down to offer his hand to Danny.

As the two walked hand in hand towards the opening that Joe had so recently come down, he noticed a distinct increase in the rattling of unstable pebbles and rocks down the side walls. He was just about to grab Danny into his arms and make a run for it, just in case, when the whole ceiling came down around them. Joe immediately flung himself on top of the boy and protected the youngster from the falling debris. It seemed an eternity before the noise stopped, and it was even longer before the dust settled.

There was total silence in the cavern.

**A/n:** _Hows that for a cliffhanger? _


	3. Chapter 3

**A/n:** _ tonight the role of overprotective (pseudo)brother will be played by Joe Hardy. Guess he was paying attention to Frank all those years after all. _

**Chapter 3**

Joe lay frozen, afraid to move but had no choice other than to do so when Danny started squirming underneath him. "Oops. Sorry, kid." He rolled to the side shaking the dust and debris out of his hair and doing a quick self check for injury. Huh. Nothing. In fact he was pretty sure nothing hit him at all. (_memo to self. Play lottery when we get outta here. Obviously Lady Luck is smiling upon me this day_) He turned to Danny, still laying panting on the ground. "Danny? Buddy? You okay?" he asked anxiously.

Danny sat up and allowed Joe to examine him. "Danny I need you to tell me if anything hurts at all, okay?" Joe was starting to panic as the boy had not so much as spoken a word since he had been found.

"'m okay" he mumbled quietly, much to Joe's relief. Danny stood up and tried to dust off his clothes, but was having little success. He did, however, begin coughing violently. Joe assumed he had breathed in some of the rock dust, just as he had. In fact Joe was hard pressed to keep from hacking up a lung himself. "Crap. Never thought to to bring a canteen. We could both use a drink right now I think." Still coughing, Danny pointed to the rear of the cavern, slightly to the right of where he had been chained. Puzzled, Joe followed the path of the boy's arm and stopped short in amazement when he got to the wall. There, neatly stacked, were 3 cases of bottled water. About half were gone, the empties neatly lined up against a crate which proved to contain a vast assortment of ready to eat foods like tuna salad kits and Twinkies and oh dear gawd was that a chicken tetrazzini MRE? Joe shook his head in amazement as he grabbed 2 bottles and brought them back to the boy who greedily grabbed his and took a long pull of the water. 'Woah there Buddy, slow down. You'll trade choking on dust for choking on water." Sure enough, Danny was soon sputtering up the water. Joe knelt down and held the boy as he gave a sharp slap on his back, hoping to dislodge the contents of the boy's windpipe.

Eventually, Danny stopped coughing long enough to take a deep shuddering breath. He looked at Joe, who was staring back at him in concern. "What happened?" he asked tremulously. "I think the roof collapsed. Looks like we are stuck here a little longer. So much for my burger..."

Danny's eyes welled with tears and a sob escaped his throat. Joe held onto the boy as he finally succumbed to all the worry and stress. Eventually he stopped crying but now had the hiccups, and his body still shuddered every few minutes so Joe just continued holding Danny in his lap. He never said anything as he was at a loss as to how to handle an hysterical 9 year old. Especially since he was damn close to hysterical himself...

It had been a very long night for Fenton, Frank and Frisk. All three were beside themselves with worry and feeling quite useless as they could not safely assist in the rescue attempt. Frank especially was nearly overcome with anxiety and no amount of urging by his father would persuade him to go to a hospital. Not even a blatant attempt by Fenton to call his wife and have _her_ lay the guilt on thick worked. Some things never change, and Frank's devotion to his brother would always be one of them. Eventually Fenton gave it up as a lost cause but made Frank promise he would take it easy and rest. Philips and his crew had begun shoring up the entrance to the shaft in anticipation of being able to start digging in a few hours. Frisk, meanwhile alternated between pacing like a caged tiger and growling like an angry bear woken too early from hibernation at anyone who got too close. Fenton had the unenviable task of informing the FBI of the delay as well as insisting they stay far far far way from Frisk, who was in no mood to listen to Bureaucratic pontificating.

Finally, Philips came over to where the three men were hovering and stated that his team was ready to begin the slow tedious work of clearing the blocked passageway. He also made it perfectly clear that none of the three would be allowed anywhere near the dig site and they best just get used to that right now. And once again it was the elder Hardy that had to placate both brother and father and impress upon them then necessity of things being done Philips' way.

A sympathetic miner came by with a thermos of hot coffee and some wrapped sandwiches, which were gratefully accepted if not actually consumed. The three men steeled themselves for a long day.

Somewhere along the line, Joe had fallen asleep. He woke, disoriented and at first had no idea what was going on. When he realized he was still clinging to Danny, it all came back in a rush, and he had to force himself not to freak out. He would _never_ tease Frank about being claustrophobic again. Gently disentangling his limbs from the boy's, he slipped out from underneath and stood up. He took his heavy leather jacket off and draped it over the sleeping child before doing a little investigating. He was smart enough to not risk digging out, he still had vivid memories of the devastation in Japan several years earlier and knew all too well if you dislodged the wrong piece of the puzzle it would come crashing down around you. Instead, he took a closer look at the cache of supplies Danny had pointed out earlier.

In addition to the cases of water, there was also a heavy wool blanket, a small pillow, and a battery operated camping lamp. He even found 2 spare sets of batteries. Continuing his circuit, he noted that everything was well within what Danny's reach would have been tethered to the wall by the chain. He nearly burst out laughing when he came across the roll of toilet paper and the portapotty. "Wait'll Frank sees this." he said quietly to himself. "He is _never _gonna believe this. Screwiest kidnapping I have ever seen. And whyinhell can't I ever get kidnapped by such a considerate bad guy? I mean sheesh.. Twinkies?" Now he turned his attention to the crate of food. He grabbed a Twinkie, noting idly that the box was nearly empty, so he figured Danny had at least been getting some nutrition..well maybe not from Twinkies...but he did find several empty tuna salad kits, a few empty granola bar boxes and about 6 or 8 mini Tobasco sauce bottles that could only have come from MREs.

Joe contemplated the significance of all this. One, the kidnapper was certainly not interested in killing the boy, otherwise he would never have made him as comfortable as he had. Two, he was not interested in psychological terror either.. hence the comfort items and the presence of the lamp. His confusion only grew when he found the complete works of JK Rowling tucked under the pillow. Food, water, hygiene and reading material? Curiouser and curiouser. He took a closer look at the MREs. He was not surprised to find them to be the more loathed options, such as the much maligned chicken tetrazzini and his own personal unfavorite the cheese and vegetable omelet. In fact, as he rifled through them he realized that universally these were the ones left over from any distribution in the field. And then he took a closer look at the packaging. He knew that MREs were available to purchase at most Army Navy supply stores, but these were actual government issue.. and they were not generally available to the public. They even said so on the package.. not for individual resale. Another piece of the puzzle. Sighing as his stomach gurgled a protest, he selected the least offensive one, Chili and macaroni. Which was not much of an improvement over chicken tetrazzini, The sound of him activating the heating unit woke Danny.

"Hey, Pal. You hungry? I realize it isn't that burger and fries I promised you but we can have Ding Dongs for dessert!" Danny rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and shuffled over to Joe, handing him the leather jacket. "Not hungry" he mumbled. Joe frowned. "Kiddo, I think you should eat. Need to keep your strength up so we can get out of here." "Not getting' outta here. We're gonna die."

This, Joe could handle, and he did so. "C'mere." he patted the ground beside him. "What makes you think that?"

"Dad closed this mine cuz people died. The roof fell down then too. They couldn't get out and neither can we!" his voice had risen a few octaves and he was rapidly approaching hysterical again.

"Danny, listen to me" Joe said firmly, grabbing hold of the boys ams and giving him a small shake. "We **will** get out of here. My brother is on the other side of that pile of rubble and you know what? He may be a pain but he will **never **give up trying to save us. Frank has saved my life so many times I have lost count. It may take some time but we _are_ going to be rescued. I promise."

Danny sniffled and said in a woebegone voice "You mean it?"

"Absolutely. Why I bet he called the Cavalry the minute he saw the cave in." Joe did not voice his concern that maybe Frank had been caught in the collapse and was hurt, or worse. In fact he firmly shoved the thought into the back of his brain. Last thing Danny needed was ammunition to bolster his fears. Last thing _he_ needed too.

"Let's eat, okay? Frank is very bossy and if we are too skinny when he gets here he's gonna yell. When your sister yells, it's pretty loud and screechy, right?" Danny nodded. "Well Frank? Is way worse than any girl." Danny actually smiled a little then and allowed Joe to heat up a veggie burger MRE. "I like the Bbq sauce it comes with."

"Me too. Although my favorite of all time is the Beef ravioli. Taste just like Chef Boy R Dee!"

"Do you eat these a lot?" Danny asked as he squirted the peanut butter that was in the package directly into his mouth.

"Well, not so much any more, but a couple of years ago I had to eat them for a few weeks when I was helping out some people who were caught in a Tsunami."

"What's a soo nommy?" he asked, fear and uncertainty giving way to curiosity.

"A really really big wave. Hundreds of feet high. It washed away everything in its path. The ship I was stationed on got sent to help the survivors." That really piqued Danny's interest. " My dad was on a ship too! Were you on the same one?" Nope, sorry, your dad was in the Navy long before I was. But I bet it was almost the same when he was in."

Joe kept up the light hearted banter throughout dinner and then insisted that Danny tell him all about Harry Potter. Danny was only about half way through Book Three but proved to be an animated storyteller and Joe found himself caught up in spite of himself. Before too long, though, Danny's eyes started to droop so Joe had him lie down and covered him up with the blanket. Within minutes Danny was sound asleep, which gave Joe the opportunity to do some more snooping around their prison. It took him only about ten minutes or discover the ventilation shafts. Once he did a huge burden lifted. At least they weren't in any danger of suffocation. And there was plenty of food and water, enough to last another 2 weeks if they were careful. Joe fervently hoped that Frank would not take two weeks however. He had a date on Friday night...

**A/n: **_Just so y'all know I am taking the weekend 'off'. Tomorrow is my birthday and since my husband is 7000 miles away keeping the world safe for democracy I shall be indulging in an all day pity party consisting of a Twilight marathon( yes I like Twilight. so sue me) and gourmet popcorn for dinner. Sunday I will be indulging in my other hobby: card making . so don't expect any updates on either story until Monday or Tuesday earliest. So nobody complain they didn't have time to do laundry..._


	4. Chapter 4

**A/n: **_ This is disgustingly short. Apologies all over the place. but I didn't want to move on the next bit as part of this installment. That and I ams till feeling under the weather but did not want to keep everyone in suspence too long. __  
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**Chapter 4**

Comparing the atmospheres between inside and outside the shaft was a study in contrast. The rescue team worked in shifts continuously. Generators were brought in to supply lighting and portable heaters during the night. The mood was grim, and tempers were short. The three men with loved ones still inside were about to fall over from exhaustion, but all refused to leave even if they were not allowed to assist. They neglected to eat or sleep, subsisting on bad coffee served in styrofoam cups. Fenton divided his time between calling Laura and reporting what little progress he could, and keeping an eagle eye on his elder son, who was showing signs of keeling over from his injuries any second. Frisk was also on the phone constantly, trying to reassure his daughter as well as ensure her safety just in case the kidnapper decided to come back. Frank, of course, ignored the increasing shortness of breath that indicated his broken ribs, which of course he refused to have looked at and insisted they merely be taped up on site, may have nicked his lung. His headache grew worse but refused to even contemplate a trip to the nearby hospital for a thorough check up and x rays. Fenton was beginning to seriously considering asking the EMT to slip Frank a sedative and forcibly drag him off.

On the other hand, inside the shaft the mood was very different. Joe was determined to keep Danny's spirits up, not only to keep the child from freaking out, but to keep himself from panicking as well. They were reasonably comfortable, what with food and water and hygiene facilities as well as the light from the camping lantern and his Mag lite. Once he established they were getting fresh air his concern diminished rapidly and he concentrated instead on keeping Danny occupied until they were rescued. So he told stories about his own misspent youth, especially old cases he and Frank had been on. He made sure to avoid any tales that included kidnapping, or being trapped anywhere. They turned their situation into a bona fide camping trip, Joe lamenting the lack of wood for a fire and thus, toasted marshmallows. They already had chocolate bars and graham crackers. Danny had soon relaxed considerably when he was awake, laughing and smiling at Joe's tall tales. It was only when he was asleep and had nightmares did the panic set in. Since there was only the one blanket( somehow Joe figured the kidnapper wasn't anticipating Danny to have company for an extended period) Joe found himself with a 9 year old boy curled up against his side whenever he slept. As he gazed on the small face, so innocent despite all he had been through lately, Joe was struck by similarities in his own life, when he was the little boy and needed comforting. "Frank, Bro, it's been like 36 hours. You can hurry up with the rescuing any time now."

Frank, unfortunately, was not in charge. Or fortunately, if you considered the fact that he most likely would have gone rushing into the mine shaft and started pulling out debris with no consideration of the consequences of pulling them out in the wrong order. Increasingly, though, Fenton worried more and more about Frank's mental health. He was becoming more and more irrational. His outbursts were more frequent and increasingly violent. In fact it got so bad that Philips threatened to have him forcibly removed from the staging area. When that happened Fenton put his foot down. He had never been a physically violent father, seldom even spanking his boys when they misbehaved. But as he approached Frank, who was gesticulating wildly and getting very close to Phillips' personal space, he took drastic action and dragged his son away and over to the ambulance. He shoved his eldest down to a sitting position at the open back with a growl and told him in no uncertain terms that he would brook .behavior like he had been demonstrating. It was a mark of just how far Frank was gone by this time that not even his father's ultimatum dissuaded him. The EMT had been nearby and came rushing over at the sound of Frank's upraised voice. It took several minutes before Frank would submit to even a cursory look over, but eventually his father's threats to lock him up, taking out his own handcuffs as a physical reminder of his ability and willingness to do exactly that calmed Frank down enough that the EMT could get close enough.

Danny had moved past the frightened stage, even asleep, and moved on to bored as hell stage. Joe empathized, big time, as he too was restless. All this enforced idleness was not good for his own sanity or patience and he found himself growing short tempered. Joe did, however, make a conscious effort to hid his frustrations from Danny as the hours passed. By his reckoning he had been trapped here for just under 48 hours now. Really, what was taking so damn long? For the first time Joe began to seriously doubt whether or not any rescue was forthcoming.

**A/n: **_don't worry, the boys will be rescued shortly. Just needed to set the tone for some upcoming drama. Here's hoping this fever goes away soon..._


	5. Chapter 5

**A/n: **_This is less short than the last one. It also took way longer to write than I had anticipated and I even cut it short. I put the chapter break sooner than I had originally planned. mostly out of guilt for making everyone wait so long. I hang my head in shame. _

**Chapter 5**

Outside, things had come to a head. Some of the equipment brought in to facilitate the rescue broke down and the mechanic was at a a loss as to why, or how it could be fixed. Phillips finally ordered the men to continue by hand. It would take longer but they could at least do something until the mechanic could work his magic, or just in case he failed, they wouldn't end up even further behind then they already were. While Phillips never outright lied to any of the concerned family members huddled in the Command Post tent, he never went out of his way to keep them updated, either. So unless Frisk or one of the Hardy's directly asked him a question, he ignored them all equally. He found it was easier to concentrate on the task at hand if he wasn't being constantly reminded lives were at stake. Emotions rattle a person, makes them careless. Careless was lethal in cave ins.

By his reckoning Joe surmised it was now Day Three. As far as he was concerned that was Four Days Too Many. Danny began showing signs of despair again, and try as he might, Joe couldn't reassure the boy any longer. But neither could he continue to sit around waiting for a rescue that he was more and more convinced was not happening. The implications of that were terrifying, as it meant only one thing; that Frank was unable to get help. And being the Drama Queen that he was, Joe naturally went straight for worse case scenario. He used to catch grief from the guys on board the ship for always being quick to jump to conclusions. Usually the worst kind of conclusions, too. Mentally he shook himself. No. he could not go there. He _wouldn't _ go there. Frank was not buried under a ton of rock. His battery died on the phone, that's all. He had to drive into the closest stretch of civilization and call for help from there. Yeah; that's it.

"I take it back, Big Bro. You can hover all you want from now on. Just get me the hell out of here!" No answer was forthcoming, as Danny was still asleep, although he was showing signs of waking up. Joe busied himself rummaging through the supplies wishing mightily for a Keurig and some Dunkin Donut K cups. Instead he had to settle for water and any powdered drink mixes from the MREs. Most of which were undrinkable unless you were desperate. He was almost desperate.

Danny stirred, and a moment later was standing next to Joe staring into the crate of prepackaged food. He gave a little sniffle but said nothing. Prior to this, Joe would have cracked some sort of lame joke about the virtues of Pop Tarts versus cereal bars but today it was too much effort. After each had made their choice, they sat against the wall and ate in silence. But eventually Danny could no longer hide the sobs that were catching in his throat and he flung himself into Joe's startled embrace. At first it was awkward, Joe being absolutely clueless as to what to do next. He had zero experience with little kids. Never babysat, didn't have younger cousins. Joe found himself tightening his embrace and letting the tears fall from his own eyes. He never spoke, not trusting that anything he could say would help at all. He was feeling mighty depressed himself; howinhell was he supposed to make Danny feel better?

The sobs finally died away, but Danny was still shuddering and hiccuping so Joe continued to keep the boy wrapped in his arms although now he began murmuring softly to him. "Shhh. It's okay, Danny. I'm here."

"I wanna go hooooome" the boy wailed piteously.

Joe sighed. He wanted to go home too but it wouldn't do for the adult in the room to break down and weep as well, despite wanting to do nothing else. Sometimes Joe hated being a responsible adult. Ironic, when you take into consideration that he had been butting heads with Frank for more than the past two years over his status as a responsible adult. Or rather, in Joe's eyes, Frank's inability to treat him as such. Right now he wanted nothing more in the universe than to have his butt saved by Frank.

In many ways, Joe mused, this situation was way worse than anything else he had ever endured. When he was alone, or with his brother( and once, his Father) he could admit that he was scared, throw a conniption fit, get all emotional then head butt his way out. But here, he had to remain in complete control, and not show his true feelings. Danny needed somebody who was strong and not apt to fall apart when things looked grim. For the first time he envied his elder brother's control and stoicism in the face of adversity. There was something to be said for an outwardly calm demeanor. In fact, if push came to shove Joe could be forced to admit that it was Frank's strength that made it possible for him to work past his own emotional breakdowns and get the job done.

Joe made a decision. He fervently hoped he had paid enough attention to Frank over the last 20 years as he mentally geared himself up for what he was about to attempt. He shifted his weight just enough so that he could look Danny in the eyes. He gently took Danny's now tear streaked face into his hands and with his thumbs delicately wiped the dirt, grime and salty tears away. "Danny, do you trust me?" he asked quietly.

Eyes large and still shining with unshed tears, Danny nodded but said nothing. Joe swallowed hard then earnestly spoke again. "We can't wait for help. We have to get ourselves out of here. I want you to do _exactly_ what I say without question okay? And if I tell you to run you run. No matter what happens to me. Understand?" If anything, Danny's eyes grew even larger and Joe saw the hint of fear in their depths. But Joe could not take the risk that the boy would rush to his aid if what he was about to attempt backfired big time. Aside from the fact that this was a 9 year old boy, he was pretty sure there was something in the Unofficial Private Investigator's Handbook that prohibited using the kidnap victim as manual labor...

Joe stood and walked over to the pile of rubble that stubbornly blocked their escape route. "I am going to start shifting these rocks. I want you to stay _out _of the way. I could screw up and cause the whole thing to come crashing down on top of me." Joe paused before squatting down to meet Danny's eyes. " I promised your father I would get you out of here, and that is exactly what I am going to try and do. And part of that promise means I am not going to put you in any danger. I know you want to help, but the best way to do that is to let me do this alone so I don't have to worry about you too, okay?"

Danny mumbled an "Okay" and went to sit over by the wall, where he occupied himself by continuing to follow the adventures of the Boy Who Lived. Joe, meanwhile, studied the rockfall intently for some time, mentally cursing himself for not paying more attention in physics class. Eventually, he just decided to pick a spot and start dislodging rocks, hoping that he could get a mini avalanche started that would allow him to make an opening while at the same time keeping stable.

As he worked, he shut his brain off, concentrating solely on the exacting task of picking _just_ the right rock to shift. It was easier to focus on that than anything else, most of all the possible fate of his brother. Joe became so focused that he lost complete track of time and would never have paused if it weren't for the fact that Danny called to him "Joe? You look thirsty. Here" as he proffered up a bottle of water. Joe was jolted out of his zone and he was startled to realize that he had been at it for almost 6 hours straight.

"Woah. Guess I got caught up up the moment. Thanks, Pal." he gratefully accepted the offering and drained the one liter bottle in one swig. He stepped back to admire his work and was pleasantly surprised to note that he had indeed made quite a dent in the wall of debris blocking the entrance. There was a definite indentation to the upper part, to the point where it was easier to pick out which rocks to start shifting next.

Danny, however, was less impressed with Joe's rock moving skills than he was fascinated by the long ugly scar that neatly bisected his chest. Joe had long ago stripped to the waist, having worked up quite a sweat early on. Joe was covered head to toe in rock dust, but the scar gleamed white against the general griminess. "What's _that"_ Danny breathed, awestruck as only a 9 year old could be. Scars were _cool. _

Joe grimaced before deciding to tell the truth in as generic a way as possible. "I got injured a while ago. They had to cut me open and operate on my heart."

"Wow. Did it hurt?"

"It hurt a lot and I was sick for a very long time. But I got better little by little and now I can do almost everything just as good as I used to."

In typical boyhood fascination, Danny was impressed as all get out and asked if he could touch it. Joe shrugged his shoulders and let the boy run his fingers over it, jumping a little at their cool touch. Joe was grateful for the respite and suggested that they grab something to eat before he got started again.

Danny was either less scared, or had started hiding his feelings better. Although he was somber and never laughed or smiled, he was no longer quite as maudlin or depressed as he had been. Or maybe it was just the fact that Joe had begin doing something rather that sit around that gave Danny a sense of comfort. Regardless, Joe was gratified to see that the boy had stopped moping quite so much. While they were nowhere near out of the woods, they at least had a goal and were making progress toward it.

Joe decided to take a nap after eating another of the vile MREs but set his watch alarm for 2 hours as he did not want to waste what little battery life was remaining on the camping lamp. They were on the last set of batteries that had been provided by the mysterious kidnapper. Joe did not know how fresh the batteries in his Mag lite were and did not want to find out the hard way. Far too soon, his watched beeped irritatingly at him. He quickly sat up and noted that Danny had fallen asleep curled up in a ball next to him. Joe eased himself out from under the boy, using his leather jacket as a substitute to his thigh which had been doubling as a pillow.

He made his way back over to his pile of rocks and began the seemingly unending task of relocation. He had been at it only a couple of hours this time when Danny joined him again offering water and this time a packet of Fig Newtons. This time the blond Hardy Brother only stopped long enough to scarf down the cookies and drain the bottle before jumping right back into the fray. Rather than go back to his reading, Danny opted to stay close by. He spent the time asking Joe all about his life, especially about having a big brother instead of a big sister, which as far as he was was concerned worse than being kidnapped. Joe, for his part, did a lot of reminiscing and began to see his brother in a whole new light, as seen through Danny's eyes. In fact he was getting downright nostalgic and had to swallow the sudden lump that appeared in his throat when Danny commented that it must be the best thing ever to have a big brother to take care of you. Joe found he did not disagree, despite having been fighting his big brother over being taken care of lately.

Jo continued to work at his task, pausing only rarely to take a break or scarf down some nourishment. The lantern batteries finally gave up the ghost, so Joe had Danny hold the Mag lite so that it illuminated the area he was working on. He was about to give it up for the night when there was a sudden rush of dislodged rock that sounded like it fell _away_ from where he was standing. He was about to ask Danny to hand him up the Mag lite when he was abruptly grabbed by the wrist in a vice like grip.

**A/n: **_ the boys are almost out! but the story won't end there. nope no sirree bob._ and yes I deliberately had no Frank/Fenton( or Frisk) in this chapter. and I warn you now.. they are MIA next chapter as well..so Nyah.


	6. Chapter 6

**a/n:**_ well since everybody else was updating tonight I thought I'd jump on the bandwagon. and then my internet went all kerplooey and now it won't load anything unless I use Chrome. unhelpful when all your bookmarks are on safari... Anywho, the boys are finally getting out. Joe is still gonna miss his date, though. sucks to be him. _

**Chapter 6**

Joe Hardy, Big Strong Manly Man, gave a decidedly _Un_manly squawk of surprise, and would have fallen on his butt if it weren't for the fact that the hand grabbing his wrist never let go. He scrambled to regain his footing on the steadily loosening pile and in seconds was peering into the opening.

"Took you guys long enough. We ran out of Twinkies yesterday!" he quipped with a face splitting grin of relief.

That was met with a look of confusion that lasted until the man at the opening was roughly shoved out of the way by Phillips. "Anyone injured?" he barked, not bothering to waste any time with any of the usual pleasantries. Joe shook his head in the negative. "Nope, just tired and sore and feeling fungus like. Please tell me you can get us out of here like now..." His natural cheekiness, which had been subdued so recently, bubbled straight back to the surface. He could afford to joke, now that he knew rescue was imminent.

Phillips, of course was unimpressed. The natural attributes that made him a superb foreman on high danger level rescues such as this one did not make him the best at interpersonal communication, especially with the rescuees( or their loved ones). "Step back and let my boys do their work. I can send through provisions, but I warn you to not drink or eat anything too quickly."

"Don't worry about us, we're stuffed, thanks. Want a Ding Dong? Like I said, we ran out of Twinkies yesterday." Joe grinned. "although..." he continued a little wistfully "I don't suppose you have any coffee handy? I need my caffeine fix. Oh, and Danny was craving an apple earlier."

Phillips just stared at him, uncertain as to whether or not he should take this young man seriously. He certainly was a far different personality than the other one, that was for sure. Shaking his head, he just said "I'll see what I can do. Hang tight, we should be able to get you out in a few hours." With that he disappeared from the narrow view Joe had. The hole was soon refilled again with a new face, a much friendlier face.

"I'm Paul, the EMT. You sure you two aren't hurt? Any fevers, chills, aches? Anything like that? Feeling dizzy?"

Joe grew serious. "No, we're fine. Plenty of ventilation, thank goodness, and with the exception of this here pile of junk, the roof is stable. There were supplies left, so we have had food and water. Even a blanket. That being said I could _really_ use a cup of black coffee and maybe a few Tylenol. My back is killing me from all the redecorating I have been doing." Paul grinned and said he'd be right back.

True to his word it was barely 2 minutes before the friendly face reappeared in the opening. He first passed through an apple that had to be the size of a grapefruit. "I heard you mention the kid had a craving." He then passed through a foil packet of pain reliever and a thermos that warmed Joe's hand when he grabbed it. "It's going to be a few hours at least so why don't you go hunker down away from here, I have a feeling the guys may get a little enthusiastic. Just be nearby in case we need to have a chat again." Joe thanked the much more personable man than the other guy and went to go tell Danny their ordeal was about to end.

Danny was curled up asleep, wearing Joe's leather jacket and looking much smaller and younger than his 9 years. Joe felt a sudden surge of fondness for the boy, who had showed remarkable courage throughout his ordeal. The kid had guts. He knelt down and gently shook the boy's shoulder. "Wake up up, Buddy, I have a something for you." Danny sleepily opened his eyes and sat up. He had barely gotten upright when Joe lightly tossed the apple in his direction. Danny reflexively grabbed it and had taken a bite before he realized just what exactly he was eating. His eyes grew very large and round and the bit of apple fell out of his slack jawed mouth.

Joe grinned at the boy's reaction and said "Guess what, pal? It's almost over! We're going home!"

Danny's reaction was classic. He began laughing and crying all at once and he was halfway to the entranceway before Joe reached out and grabbed his arm. "Woah, there, Kiddo, not quite yet. They are still making the hole big enough for us to squeeze through. They want us to sit tight and relax."

Danny was not about to do any more sitting, tight or otherwise and he said so quite mulishly. Joe grinned, seeing himself in the stubborn set of the boy's jaw and the crossed arms wrapped tight around his body. Heck he sympathized. But despite him wanting to do exactly what Danny proposed; run over there and bug the workers, he knew(damn that maturity thing again) that doing so would only prolong the rescue. "Why don't we get ourselves ready to go, huh? Tidy up the place, pack our stuff, that sort of thing." Danny gave him a Look that Spoke Volumes. The one that says 9 year old boys had no 'tidy' gene. "All I wanna take is the book. You can keep the rest." and he punctuated his displeasure by kicking at the dirt and causing a mini dust storm which had both of them coughing.

By the time they had recovered, Joe was in full agreement and quickly gathered up a few small items, namely one or two empty MRE packages. Maybe he could track where they came from. He also snagged the cuff that had been used to restrain Danny in the hopes that it too could be traced. Joe threw his now filthy as all get out tee shirt back on, shrugged into his leather jacket which was also showing serious signs of dilapidation and made his way with the eager Danny towards freedom.

In just the few minutes that had passed since Joe had surprised Danny with his apple, the opening had gotten considerably larger. Danny ran straight over, no longer able to contain himself. Joe didn't have the heart to stop him, nor was he terribly inclined to drag him out of the way of the men working. He admitted to himself he was just as anxious and ready for this ordeal to be over. Luckily Phillips was elsewhere and the two men who were making headway were quite willing to have such an appreciative audience. Joe did manage to get Danny to sit over to the side, where he could still keep a watchful eye on things but where he would not be in the way. Danny talked nonstop to the men, and Joe found himself blushing a little when he started extolling his virtues. Apparently Danny had a bit of a hero worship thing going. And once again he was struck by the similarities between Danny and himself at that age.

Now that they were so close he could taste it, Joe found his impatience growing exponentially, made worse by the fact that he was idly standing by while other people did all the work. He began pacing, going back and forth. The thermos of coffee was soon emptied but he declined the offer of a second. He did however, have his own apple.

Although it seemed an eternity, in reality it was less than 4 hours from when the men first broke through before the opening was wide enough to allow one 9 year old boy and one 26 year old man to squeeze through. Actually Danny could have gotten out an hour earlier but a sudden bout of reticence prevented him and he spent the rest of the time clinging tightly to Joe, unwilling to leave his side . Joe knew how he felt. He went through the same thing when he had been kidnapped at about the same age. And he had had it worse, with no Harry Potter to keep him distracted, just a very old damp musty basement that was crawling with rats.

When the men finally declared the opening both large and stable enough, Joe tried to get Danny to go through first but Danny balked. "What's the matter, Buddy?" Joe asked softly as he knelt down next to the violently trembling boy. Even the one worker who had crawled all the way in to assist in their exit was confused. Danny bit his lip so hard he drew blood but refused to budge. Outside Joe could hear Phillips demanding to know what the hell the holdup was. Suppressing the strong irritation he felt at the combative tone of the voice he continued to speak softly to Danny, not rushing him or pushing him at all. "Your father is outside waiting for you. Don't you want to see him?" Danny shook his head violently.

"He doesn't wanna see me!" he wailed. "He doesn't love me any more!"

Joe and the worker were flabbergasted at this pronouncement, looking at each other in disbelief over Danny's head. "Danny, buddy, what makes you think that?" Joe whispered, his heart breaking at the forlorn sound of the boy's voice.

"If he did he woulda come get me hisself" Danny hiccuped.

Joe wasn't as shocked at that pronouncement as he should have been. As a matter of fact he was thinking the same thing... only about Frank not beating down the wall to get to them. Joe swallowed hard, trying to come up with a plausible explanation that didn't sound fake to his own ears when he was saved by the other man. "he wanted to, Kid, but the Boss wouldn't let nobody in the shaft that wasn't one of us. I swear. He's been out there since before I even got here, and that was 4 days ago." The man looked Joe directly in the eyes and nodded, confirming silently that this was indeed the truth. Joe felt a huge weight lift off his chest. So that was why Frank wasn't there. He could deal with that. Beat thinking his brother was not there because of something unthinkable.

"See, Pal, you have nothing to be worried about. And I dunno about you but I am REALLY tired of granola bars and MREs. What say we go grab your dad and my brother and all go out for a burger. Or pizza. Pizza's good. I like Pizza." Joe tried to keep his voice light.

"I..I.. guess so" he sniffled. Once again, he balked at the entranceway.

"Tell ya what, Kid. I'll go first and then you can follow me, okay? I'll catch ya." Joe assured the boy.

Danny nodded, so Joe took off his leather jacket and stuffed it through the opening to the man waiting on the other side. He was soon wriggling his way through head first and landed unceremoniously at the feet of Phillips, who was the only person to not cheer although he did extend a hand and helped Joe to his feet. With a quick nod of thanks, Joe about faced and was immediately encouraging Danny to follow him through the hole. The other man had lifted Danny up and was bracing him from behind as the boy made his way to freedom. Cheers rang out a second time as Danny practically leaped into Joe's arms. Joe made to set him down but stopped when his arms tightened around Joe's neck. Guess he was gonna be playing pack mule the last few hundred yards. No biggie. He knew the boy was physically and emotionally exhausted, just as he was. He could be a grown up for another 5 minutes.

They were soon outside in the late afternoon sun. Frisk snatched his son out of Joe's arms before they had fully emerged from the shaft entrance. No words were spoken, but both Father and son wept, their tears mingling unashamedly. Joe smiled at the reunion even as he swiveled his head around, expecting Frank to barrel into him any second. Yeap. Aaaany second now. Uh huh.

The seconds passed. Then a full minute had gone by. Joe was becoming decidedly grumpy and feeling a little hurt and unloved. Well sheesh. Talk about taking the whole "I can take care of myself" argument they had been having over the last year to extremes. "Picked a helluva time to cut the apron strings, Big Brother." Then it came to him. Fenton had been glued to Frisk's side ever since the first kidnapping note had come in and Frisk had hired him. There was Frisk, still clinging to his child even as Paul tried to get close enough to examine the boy. So where was his father?

Joe's insides turned to ice as the implications grew clear. He started grabbing anyone who passed him by, asking about Frank, but to a man they had no news. Most were apologetic, stating they never really noticed anyone as they showed up and immediately went to work. Pretty well frantic by now he rushed over to the ambulance where Frisk had finally allowed Paul to take a look at Danny.

"Mr Frisk, . ?" Joe growled. Frisk jumped, startled at the intensity of Joe's voice. He swallowed convulsively and seemed to be searching for the words. Joe felt himself go faint and he sat down heavily on the edge of the rescue vehicle. The implications were ominous.

Oh, gawd. Big Brother. Please, no. The tears began flowing through tightly shut eyes as Joe refused to give voice to his fears.

**A/n: **_go ahead tell me I am a rotten person. you know ya wanna. I promise the family reunion happens next chapter. Honest. _


	7. Chapter 7

**a/n:**_ Honestly, guys I tried for two hours last night to post this but the site was FUBAR. I am also reposting the last couple of paragraphs from Ch6 as some of it got eaten during transition. not sure it makes a huge difference in flow or context, but I think it needed fixing. _

_"Mr Frisk, Where. Is. My. Family?" Joe growled. Frisk jumped, startled at the intensity of Joe's voice. He swallowed convulsively and seemed to be searching for the words. Joe felt himself go faint and he sat down heavily on the edge of the rescue vehicle. The implications were ominous._

_Oh, gawd. Big Brother. Please, no. The tears began flowing through tightly shut eyes as Joe refused to give voice to his fears._

**Chapter 7**

Frisk was spared the daunting task of explaining to the man whom he owed his son's life what had happened by the timely interruption of Paul, who had satisfied himself that Danny was uninjured. "Your brother collapsed early yesterday afternoon, Joe. I am pretty sure it was a combination of his injuries and exhaustion. He was brought to the local hospital and your father went with him."

"What injuries?" Joe cried, relief at discovering Frank had at least survived the cave in warring with the fact that he had been hurt.

"Far as I could tell, a couple of cracked ribs and a mild concussion. He wouldn't let me do anything more comprehensive, not even after your father started pushing the issue." Paul replied, placing a hand on Joe's arm in quiet support. "Truth be told I figured they'd be back here by now after a few x-rays and some stronger pain killers. Other than some pretty intense agitation, he seemed fine up until he collapsed. Your Father said that he's like that, never thinks of himself when there's something going on with you."

Joe nodded, saying "Yeah, it's kinda annoying, and at the same time kinda humbling. He's always been over protective. I wasn't always in imminent danger of grievous personal injury, but he sure acted like I was while we were growing up."

"Look, Phillips is going to insist that you and Danny both be taken in for a check up. And I am going to back him up on it. So why don't you climb on in here next to your partner and we'll be off. Mr Frisk, you can follow along behind." Paul turned to the man, who was reluctant to let his son out of his sight for even a few minutes.

Danny piped up "It's okay, Daddy, Joe won't let anything happen to me. He's awesome." Danny's simple and utter faith struck a chord in Joe's heart and he suddenly had a lump in his throat to go along with the blush on his cheeks. If it weren't for the fact that Danny had black hair and hazel eyes, he'd swear he was looking at himself 15 years ago. Same dogged devotion to an older brother(figuratively speaking), same unflagging acceptance that he was safe in such a presence.

Frisk gave Joe a Look That Spoke Volumes( now he knew where the younger version got it from) and gave his son a quick hug, saying "I'll be following right behind you the entire time." It almost felt as if there was a formal Handing Off of responsibility for the oblivious 9 year old. Joe hoped to hell that Paul was a decent driver and there would be no accident on the way to the hospital. It would just be his luck that they'd get a flat or something.

Paul not only turned out to be an excellent driver, they encountered almost no traffic and in less than 10 minutes they were pulling into the emergency entrance of the small private hospital that served the area. It actually took longer to convince Danny to quit playing with the machines in the back of the rig and allow himself to be brought inside for a quick going over by the ER staff. Joe wasted little time handing his charge back over to the boy's father and then went off in search of his own. Paul had told him where to get the information and in moments was on his way to the fifth floor.

When he reached the nurse's station, he had to wait a few minutes as the lone nurse he could see was receiving detailed instructions from a harried looking doctor who looked as if he needed about 3 days' sleep and a shower, not necessarily in that order. When he finished, the doctor gave Joe a small nod of acknowledgement and said good night to the nurse.

The nurse returned the sentiment and then turned to the impatient (but rather cute, she thought) blond young man. "May I help you?" she smiled at him.

"Yeah. I'm Joe Hardy and I've been told my brother Frank was brought in yesterday. My Dad was with him."

"Oh, yes, of course. Your brother is just down the hall in room 511. Left side. I believe your father is in with him currently."

With a harried "Thanks" thrown back over his shoulder Joe was already halfway down the hall by the time she finished speaking. The Nurse pouted a little but then got on with her day. She knew she'd be seeing the cute one at least another day, possibly two.

Joe didn't hesitate but pushed open the door without drama or fanfare. The room was bright and cheery and Fenton was seated on a low chair that looked pretty comfortable actually. Far cry from the hideous plastic monstrosities of Bayport General. Fenton leaped out of the chair and engulfed his youngest in a fierce hug that threatened to crack a few ribs of his own.

"Oof. Can't. Breathe." Joe gasped half laughing. "I"m fine, Dad, and so is Danny. Everything's great."

Fenton gave his own half laugh, half sob and stepped back although he did not disengage his arms completely; instead he continued to grasp his son by the arms. "I should have been there. I'm sorry I wasn't. Are you sure you're okay?" Father looked intensely at Son as if to reassure himself that Joe was indeed really there and in one piece.

Joe grew serious. "Not a scratch on me. I was in more danger of death by boredom than anything. And Danny, wow. He held it together pretty well. Not sure I would have been as strong at that age, especially after the roof collapsed. Speaking of which, why was Frank caught in it? I told him to wait outside!" Joe glanced over to the quiet form of his brother who had not stirred at his entrance.

"I called his cell to see how you two were faring. When Frank told me that the mine shaft belonged to Frisk, he warned me that it had been closed because of an accident. He was on his was to warn you and got caught. It was a miracle he ended up on the far side of the collapse and not trapped along with you." Fenton led Joe over to the chair and sat him down. Joe kept looking over at his brother, wondering how he was. He certainly didn't _look _ too battered or bruised. Despite his anxiety, he kept his questions to himself and let his father continue.

"He had said he would call back immediately, but when he hadn't after ten minutes, Frisk and I got in the car and started towards you. And yes we tapped your GPS. Deal with it." Fenton gave a mock glare that dared Joe to argue. Wisely, Joe opted to let that pass. "After about an hour of me trying to get through he finally picked up. Said he'd been knocked out by the blast. So I called in the big guns and the miners were there almost as soon as we were. We were on site and working towards a solution before midnight." Fenton paused as he gazed earnestly at his blond offspring. "You were never alone."

" Never thought I was." Joe was unwilling to voice his momentary lapses of despair, feeling that it was unimportant after the fact, plus there was no reason to cause his family any guilt over his doubts.

Joe had to suppress a twinge of his own guilt as he listened to his father continue the story, hearing of their feelings of helplessness after being barred from the shaft by Phillips. He and Danny had been almost enjoying themselves, while their families had been besides themselves with worry. Part of him was irritated at the man's seeming callousness but he also conceded that in retrospect it was the smartest move. He knew just how pushy Frank could get. He gave a sharp bark of laughter at what he assumed was one hell of an understatement when Fenton said "Frank got a little..upset.. when the excavator failed."

"I bet. I can just see him getting all scary calm and up in Phillips' face and explaining to him that he damn well better get his Baby Brother out 25 minutes ago." Joe tuned his gaze fondly on his sleeping brother. "Hey, Bro, wake up!" he nudged Frank's arm lightly.

There was something about the silence that followed that sent a chill down Joe's spine. He turned back to his father and was shocked at what he saw. Fenton had gone very pale and his eyes had taken on a haunted look.

"Dad?" he gasped fearfully. "What aren't you telling me?"

Fenton swallowed hard, and took a few moments to compose himself. "Son, Frank went completely off the deep end. Scary Calm Frank was nowhere to be found. He was like a madman, he got physically violent and he nearly attacked Phillips. I had to drag him away by force. I even had to threaten to restrain him." he paused as if afraid to go on, but Joe leaned in close to him and pleaded with him to continue. "I have never seen him lose control like that. When he took a swing at me, I had...to..." Fenton stopped, ashamed to go on.

Joe lightly placed his hand on his father's knee, silently telling him it was okay to continue.

"Joesph, I hit your brother." Fenton's voice was anguished. In 27 years of parenthood he had never raised a hand against his children in anger. Joe was numb with shock at the announcement. "I haven't even told your Mother. All she knows is that Frank collapsed and he's being held for observation." Fenton took another deep, shuddering breath before dropping another bombshell. "It's a Psychiatric hold."

Joe's world crashed around him. "I don't believe it" he whispered. "Frank's the sanest, most rational person I know."

Fenton nodded in agreement. "If anyone were to ask me which of my sons was crazy, you would have been my first choice." this was said with a very wan smile that produced an equally wan one in return.

Fenton took a deep breath and plowed on with his story. "After I knocked your brother out, the EMTs on site sedated him and one of them drove us here. They did an MRI to rule out inter cranial bleeding, then worked their way through the gamut, ruling out tumors, thyroid issues etc. Any minute I expected Greg House to limp in the door, insult me and then waltz back out after diagnosing him with some rare disease no one ever heard of before." Joe smiled a little at his father's attempt at levity.

"He has 3 cracked ribs and a very mild concussion. They can find no medical explanation for his violence and paranoia. Any time he was conscious he was fighting tooth and nail to get back to the mine. He kept screaming that he had to save you. I managed to talk them into not doing anything until you showed up. Maybe seeing that you are fine will snap Frank out of it." He sighed, looking very tired and worried. Joe realized that he had been in a very hard position, not knowing Joe's fate but at the same time being wrapped up in Frank's.

"Dad, why don't you go take a break and find Frank's doctor. Now that I am here they can take him off the sedation so he can see for himself. And I _really_ need a shower." Joe sniffed his armpit dramatically and wrinkled his nose in disgust. "I can do that while you are looking for the doctor. I just need to umm..find something presentable to wear." Fenton told him there were scrubs in a drawer over by the sink on the far wall. Joe's face it up at the thought of clean clothes and hair and skin and he shooed his father out of the room. "We'll figure this out. Frank's gonna be fine. All he needs is to see my handsome mug!" Joe didn't show that he didn't believe a word of what he was saying, and Fenton gratefully pretended he had bought it hook line and sinker. Neither man's smile remained when they were alone.

Joe swiftly divested himself of the now ruined clothes he had been wearing for the past 4 days. He took a long shower that included shampooing twice and a shave with the cheap plastic disposable razor that was in the bathroom's wall unit. He emerged feeling about a thousand percent better even if the scrubs were a bit too tight across the shoulders and a bit to short at the ankles. He rummaged through the drawers in the side table next to his brother who was, to his amusement, snoring lightly. Just as he suspected he found Frank's personal effects, including his cell phone, which he was glad to see had half a charge left on it. The first number he dialed was home. He was pretty sure Dad had already let his mother know he was safe but he also knew he was expected to do so himself. "Hi Mom. Yes I am fine. I am with Frank now, but he's still asleep. Didn't want to disturb him." he wisely said nothing to Laura about the conversation he had had earlier. He spent only a few more minutes reassuring her and promising that he would be home soon before hanging up. His second call was to his date. He got her voicemail, which didn't surprise him as one she was probably still at work and two he doubted she would recognize his brother's cell number. "Hey. It's me. Need a rain check on tonight. In case you hadn't heard, I have been trapped in a mine shaft the last 4 days with a 9 year old, and no this is not some lame ass attempt to stand you up, either. My brother is in the hospital. I probably won't be back in town until this weekend some time. My cell died and Frank's is close to doing so as well so as soon as I get it charged I'll call you again. Sorry. Ill make it up to you, promise."

Joe made himself comfortable, deciding to wait rather than go seek out anyone. He shocked even himself at this uncharacteristic display of patience but something told him he needed to be in the room more than he needed to be out and about making things happen. It was only a few minutes before Fenton returned with a doctor, who introduced himself as Dr Charles and shook Joe;'s hand before turning off the sedative drip in Frank's IV. "He'll probably take a few hours to wake up. And something tells me that you will be as insistent as your father that you spend the night, am I right?" he smiled.

"Wild horses, doc. Not goin' anywhere."

"Thought so" he turned to the older man, and said "That means you no longer have an excuse. You are exhausted. Go home, get some rest." he leaned in to whisper in Fenton's ear "and bring back some clothes that fit him" jerking his thumb in Joe's direction "Carrie is already making googly eyes about him." he was referring to the nurse who had given Joe the information on his brother earlier.

Fenton's grin was a bit more pronounced this time and he promised to be back mid morning. He embraced his younger son again, whispering "I'm glad you're okay, Joe" before departing for the night.

Almost immediately, the door was opened again, this time by a very hyper 9 year old boy who was also dressed in scrubs although his were much too large on him. Now that his ordeal was over, Danny was rambunctious and bouncing off the walls. He also carried with him the unmistakable scent of golden crispy delicious french fries. And a Quarter Pounder with Cheese. " Ahh, Danny m'boy you are a sight for sore eyes. And an empty tummy. Give over." and he playfully made to grab the bag out of the boy's hands. Danny laughed and danced just out of Joe's reach before relenting and allowing Joe to stuff his face with the greasy goodness.

They spent a few minutes just sitting together and relaxing. Joe made a production out of introducing Danny to his sleeping brother, promising that soon he'd be awake and they could meet for real. It was only a few minutes later when Mr Frisk came in with the Nurse.

"Danny, can you give me an Joe a minute? I want you to go with Nurse Carrie and I'll be right out."

Danny gave Joe a tackle hug around his knees and Joe laughingly sent him on his way. He turned to Mr Frisk and began to speak, but was stopped with an upraised hand.

"I just wanted to thank you for being there for Danny. I owe you more than I can ever repay." his voice was thick with emotion and tears shown in his eyes. Joe tried to demur, saying he was only doing his job, but Frisk would have no self depreciation. "I mean it. Danny hasn't stopped talking about you. If it weren't for you I think he would have died." he stretched out his hand to Joe but was not content with a mere handshake and pulled him into a rough embrace. Both men were embarrassed but tried to pretend they weren't.

"He's a good kid, bravest one I ever saw. And when Frank gets out of here I want to help find Danny's kidnapper. I have some thoughts based on what I found in the shaft that I think the FBI should hear."

"I'll arrange for the lead Agent to contact you then." Frisk shook Joe's hand again and then departed.

Joe found himself alone for the first time in four days. He was also in no danger, except maybe boredom again. So it didn't take long before his eyelids drooped and he was asleep in the chair that he had pulled up close to the bed. He was so close in fact that he was woken up out of a sound sleep by Frank's thrashing about. He got clocked in the head by a wildly waving arm and it took him a few seconds to get situated.

"Frank! Take it easy, Bro. Yer gonna give me a black eye!"

But Frank was lost in his own nightmare as he continued to thrash about, and he started saying "Let me go! I have to find him! He needs me!"

"Frank! I am right here! I'm okay! Relax. Everything's fine." It took many long minutes before Frank became cognizant of his surroundings. When he finally cut through the haze, it was as if he had been muffled in his head. Everything was fuzzy and he was very confused.

Frank looked straight through his brother and said "I couldn't save him. I failed. Oh god Mike's dead and it's my fault!" Frank's eyes were blank, empty.

Joe was horrorstruck at the words. He began pleading softly to his brother "Frank? C'mon Big Bro yer scaring me. Look at me, Frank! It's Joe. Please Frank, tell me what's wrong." Joe was using the same soft soothing voice he had used just a few days earlier to coax Danny down from his fear. Eventually it seemed that he was getting through, because Frank's eyes lost their glazed look and he took a deep breath.

"Jjjoe?" he said tremulously. Joe gave a huge sigh of relief and smiled tenderly. "Hey there."

Once again Joe found himself attacked but this time Frank threw his arms around his brother and started sobbing "Oh, Joe!"

Joe was, in the words of a friend from Great Britain, gobsmacked. It was the only world that could adequately express the shock he felt at this supremely uncharacteristic loss of control by his older sibling. "Frank, it was no big deal. In fact you are gonna be seriously pissed to have wasted valuable time worrying about me. While you were outside freaking, Danny and I were eating Twinkies and reading Harry Potter!" he tried to joke his way into a sense of normalcy that fell flat when he noted that Frank had not changed his expression of panic at all.

"I can't lose you too. I just can't" Frank whispered in a voice so low Joe barely understood it.

"Frank." voice of extreme patience. "I am right here. Not going anywhere. I'm fine. Not a scratch on me. Honest. Look, Frank. I'm okay." Frank nodded, but refused to let go of his brother so Joe ended up scootching onto the bed next to him. And for the first time in his life, their roles were reversed as Joe held his brother close while Frank cried himself to sleep.

**A/n:** _ almost to the end, just a couple of chapters to wrap up the pesky kidnapping and to set up the next story, which as I have already said will deal with Frank's breakdown. It's going to be a new direction for me storytelling.. not much levity as Frank never was much of a casual kinda guy.. so I think it may take longer for me to get the tone right. _


	8. Chapter 8

**A/n: **_more role reversal. Joe is surprising himself with all this newfound insight. _

**Chapter 8**

As the hours passed, Joe did a lot of thinking. Mostly he marveled at the situation he found himself in. This was new territory for him; being the brother doing the comforting was odd to say the least. Much to his surprise, he had discovered within himself over the last few days a capacity for it that he had not known existed. Joe had felt a strong instinct to protect young Danny, and he barely knew the boy. Was this how Frank felt about him? Only magnified a thousand times due to the bonds of family and love? The enormity of that implication shocked the blond brother to his core. He had really done Frank a disservice by pushing him away recently. He vowed he would not make the same mistake twice and if he could make it up to Frank by returning the favor, he would give it his best shot.

Joe had eventually fallen asleep despite his uncomfortable position on the narrow hospital bed that was fully occupied by his brother. He did not wake when the Nurses came in in for their rounds, nor did he stir when Fenton had returned bright and early. That gave Fenton the opportunity to gaze fondly on his offspring as well as be sorely tempted to snag a photo with his camera phone and send it to his wife, still at home fretting as mothers are wont to do. He had just pulled out his iPhone and was bringing up the correct app when Joe stirred and opened his eyes. Fenton hastily slid the phone back into a pocket and was about to speak when Joe put a finger to his lips and awkwardly slid out from under Frank's dead weight.

Joe indicated with a tilt of his head that he wanted to go out into the hall and moved toward the door, letting Fenton get all the way out of the room and the door closing behind him. He was, however taken aback at Joe's abrupt about face and quick step march right up into Fenton's face "Who the _hell_ is Mike, and why is Frank blaming himself for his death?" he seethed at his father in a low undertone.

"Huh?" Fenton was completely taken aback at the intensity of the question. Actually the content of the question threw him for a loop. "Son I have no idea who or what you are talking about!"

Joe visibly tried to calm down and took a very deep breath before letting it out slowly. "He woke up in the middle of the night. Nearly took my head off with a right hook. I tried getting him to calm down but was totally out of it." Joe paused, looking at his father with eyes that were awash with emotion. "Dad he looked right _through_ me like I wasn't even there and then he said that Mike was dead, that he couldn't save him and it was all his fault. Took another 5 minutes before he rejoined reality and recognized me." Joe ran a shaking hand through his disheveled locks. "And then he clung to me like a drowning man and kept saying he couldn't lose me too. He literally would not let me go, as you saw when you came in. At my worst I don't think I was ever that clingy."

Fenton was flabbergasted. He was positive the name meant nothing to him professionally or otherwise. "I have no idea who that is. I can ask Sam if the name means anything to him, he's worked a few cases with Frank without me."

Joe was not happy at the fact that his father was just as clueless as he was. "I don't think I should leave him alone. Could you grab me some coffee and a bite to eat?"

Fenton promised something semi edible before handing over the small overnight bag Laura had packed for Joe. "I found your cell in the SUV and charged it overnight. The cord is in the bag too, so you can charge Frank's. "I won't be long." and with that Fenton was gone, already pulling his own phone back out to call his partner.

Joe returned to the room, relieved to note that Frank had not yet woken. He was concerned that a repeat of the night before would occur and he wanted to be here to reassure his brother. He quickly changed out of the too small scrubs and into the pair of khakis and polo shirt Laura had provided. While he was waiting for his father to return Dr Charles stopped by on his morning rounds. He seemed both concerned and pragmatic at Joe's report of how Frank regained consciousness. "Well, I am happy to hear he did at least eventually calm down. Before not even your father could get through to him and we had to resort to keeping him sedated, which is not good for his concussion. Guess you are a calming influence." Joe gave a bark of self mocking laughter at that description of himself but said nothing. "I hesitate to give hm any sort of stimulant, so I am going to suggest you let him wake up on his own, no matter how long that takes. In fact I hope it takes a while. Natural sleep is the best medicine. But definitely call the Nurse if does become violent again." with that, Dr Charles was on his way.

Fenton soon returned with a large coffee and a bagel that was mostly cream cheese. "You know me so well" Joe quipped as he unwrapped the Everything bagel and noticed the 2 inch thick filling.

"You take after your mother in that regard" Fenton replied with a smile. "Every Sunday when we still lived in the City I was under orders to get up early, head to the corner deli and bring back a half dozen, still warm and at least a pint of cream cheese."

"What did Sam have to say?" asked Joe as he bit into his bagel.

"Sorry, son, but he's as clueless as I am. He did promise to go through the old files to see if he's just forgetting something. Shouldn't be too hard, Frank keeps disgustingly meticulous notes."

Joe nodded, only slightly surprised that Sam was unable to shed any light on the mysterious Mike.  
>"Dr Charles was just in, says we should let Sleeping Beauty wake up on his own. But I think I should stay here round the clock until he does. Just in case..." Joe's voice trailed off.<p>

Fenton nodded. "I agree."

The rest of the morning passed without incident, Joe giving his father details about the set up in the cave and giving voice to his theories. Fenton had concurred with Joe's assessment that the kidnapper had no intention of hurting the child and added his own thoughts to the discussion. "One thing that struck me as rather odd was the amount of ransom asked. The note asked for exactly the amount of ready cash Frisk could get his hands on immediately. Not a penny more. It also was nowhere near enough to bankrupt the man, or even put a serious dent in his long term business dealings." he mused. "And another thing" he said, suddenly leaning forward as a new thought occurred to him. "The tone of the notes were very..bland. Non threatening. None of the usual 'give me all you got or the kid dies' rhetoric. It was almost as if the kidnapper knew ahead of time how much Frisk could afford on short notice and couched his demands accordingly."

Joe mulled that over as he paced the room. "This is gonna sound screwy, Dad, but hear me out. What if the kidnapping was just a diversion?"

"What do you mean, Joe?" Fenton asked, intrigued.

"Something Frisk said before Frank and I took off with the directions to find Danny. One of his people kept trying to get him to sign some contract or other. But Frisk refused. Said he didn't give a damn about that right now. I clearly remember the lackey saying that if it wasn't signed that day it would be null and void." Joe stopped as a revelation hit him. "What if Danny's kidnapping was not about money, or revenge, but keeping Frisk from completing that deal?"

Fenton had by this time got caught up in Joe's theory. "That's one helluva concept. And you may be on to something. I'll have Sam go over there and discuss it with Frisk today." Fenton stood up and left the room to go make the call to his partner.

Joe took a moment to stare at his brother's sleeping form. He resisted the urge to shake him awake despite wanting desperately to talk to him. He found the irony amusing. One more role reversal. Usually _he_ was the one who slept in and Frank was the one who had to drag him outta bed. He shook his head, smiling sadly. This was getting too weird for words.

It was early afternoon before Frank showed signs of rejoining the waking world. Joe heaved a sigh of relief as quite honestly the six month old magazines he had grabbed from the waiting area were not exactly stimulating and his father had not yet returned. Joe situated his body to be within Frank's eye line, but maintained a healthy distance.. just in case.

Frank began to stir, mumbling a little as he slowly regained consciousness. Joe hastily threw away the magazine and leaned forward, softly saying "Frank? Wakey wakey Big Bro."

As brown eyes blinked open, blue ones gazed intently, looking for signs of paranoia or violence. This time, however, Joe saw only confusion. "Joe?" Frank cried. "wha? How did I get here? Umm.. _where _is here? And how did you get out of the mine?"

Joe stared at his brother, dumbfounded. It was as if Frank had no recollection of the last 36 hours. He was lucid, slightly anxious maybe but certainly nothing like the crazed maniac of the night before. He opted to answer the last question first.

"Phillips and his band of Merry Men dug us out. Danny's fine, by the way. Neither of us got caught in the collapse. Unlike you, who apparently decided to get conked on the head. You are in the local Hospital, which by the way has way nicer chairs than Bayport General."

"Umm okay. But why?" Frank was still confused. This alarmed Joe. Was short term memory loss something to be concerned about? He decided to feign ignorance.

"Dunno. All Dad said was that you collapsed at some point. Probably because you over did it with the worry wart routine. And don't tell me you didn't! Paul said you refused any pain killers or medical treatment at the shaft."

"Paul?" Frank asked, quizzically.

"The EMT on site. He was there just in case Danny or I needed anything. We didn't, as you can see. Danny has been safely returned, none the worse for wear."

Frank smiled at that news. "That's great. So the case is closed?"

Joe shook his head no. "Too many weird things that didn't make sense, and still don't. Dad is following up on a hunch of mine. I should call him and let him know you are awake" and Joe pulled out his cell phone. But Frank was more interested in Joe's hunch.

"what hunch?" he asked.

"Never you mind. Plenty of time to discuss the case later. First Dad, then Mom, then the doctor. And then you and I have some things to discuss, Brother of Mine." There was something ominous and foreboding in Joe's tone of voice and Frank wasn't sure what to make of it.

Joe quickly hit the speed dial that connected him with his father. "Hey. He's awake." he listened for a minute, glancing over at his brother with a veiled expression before replying cryptically "Nope. Yeah, I'll call Mom and let her talk to him in person." Joe paused and stuck his hand over the mouthpiece before asking Frank "What do you want for lunch?" Frank shrugged "Whatever, not that hungry."

Joe turned back to the phone and spoke "Surprise us. See ya soon." Joe disconnected and them immediately went to the next number on his speed dial list. "Hey Mom. Someone wants to say hello." he handed the phone off to his brother and jerked his thumb towards the door. "Be right back. I'm going to let the Nurse know you are awake." As he left he heard his brother say "Hi Mom."

Joe quickly walked over to the Nurse's station and was pleased to see that Dr Charles was standing there. "Hey Doc. Frank's awake, but..." his voice trailed off as he tried to make sense of what he had just witnessed.

"Is he combative?" Dr Charles asked quickly, coming around from behind the desk and making as if to go into the room.

"No, no nothing like that. In fact, just the opposite. It was like last night, and the last few days never happened at all. He seemed surprised he was even in the hospital at all, let alone on a Psych Hold. And no I haven't said anything. Should I have?" Joe asked with worry in his voice.

Dr Charles hastily assured the young man he did the right thing. "It's actually not uncommon at all to have no recollection of such episodes. Forcing them to remember before they have been prepared can do more harm than good." He asked Joe to come with him as he went to see Frank.

Frank was still talking to his mother but easily passed the phone back to his brother when he walked in.  
>"Hello, Frank I'm Dr Charles. We met a couple of days ago. Do you remember?" The young doctor smiled at the patient.<p>

"Sorry, no. Should I?" Frank asked with a twinge of alarm.

"No, not necessarily. You were rather...distraught...when you were brought in. Joe, can you give us a few minutes?" the doctor turned to the younger Hardy, who nodded his head and gave Frank a quick glance to reassure him. "I'll be right outside."

Once they were alone, Dr Charles began the usual routine, checking Frank's pupils, blood pressure and such while asking him innocuous questions. Frank answered all of them calmly, and rationally with only a little hesitation when he was fuzzy on details. Dr Charles, for his part, gave no indication as to his thoughts and remained noncommittal when Frank asked him any questions. He was soon satisfied that there was nothing immediate to be done and excused himself.

Once outside he was met by an anxious Joe who wasted no time asking what was next. "Well, to be honest we have no legal right to keep him any longer under the Psych Hold, and there is no medical reason to keep him any longer either. But I strongly suggest that he be seen by a mental health professional as soon as possible. And he should be informed as to his condition when he was brought in the other day." Joe promised to take care of both items as soon as possible.

"Good. I will draw up his discharge papers and you can be on your way in a couple of hours."

"Thanks, Doc. I'll let him know." Joe headed towards Frank's room. Once back he smiled at Frank and said "Feel like getting out of here? Doc says you can go home this afternoon."

Frank appeared to be eager to do so but he was somewhat subdued. There was something ..off.. about his brother's attitude. Joe never shared his feelings and eventually Frank just assumed he was still tired from the ordeal at the mine shaft. Joe was on the phone with Fenton, letting him know it was not necessary for him to return after all and that he could tell Laura to fix dinner for 4.

The discharge papers arrived in record time and Joe brought the SUV around while Frank was changing into street clothes. With a final goodbye to the Nurse on duty, Frank and Joe were soon on their way back to Bayport.

The drive back was about 2 hours, and Joe spent that time telling Frank all that had happened to him and Danny in the shaft before tackling the subject of what had happened to _Frank_ during the same time frame. He was incredulous at the announcement that he took a swing at his Father and vehemently denied doing any such thing. Joe just shook his head and said " No way would Dad exaggerate that. And he sure as hell would never have admitting to cold cocking you if he hadn't been forced into it!" The only thing Joe failed to mention was Mike. Something told him that now was not the time.

Soon enough, Joe was pulling into the driveway on Elm, where they were met by Laura who couldn't wait until they got inside before giving them each strong hugs. Fenton arrived a half hour later and dinner commenced. Fenton and Joe studiously avoided meaningful gazes amongst themselves but at one point Joe cornered Fenton in the kitchen and said he was going to make some phone calls in the morning and not to worry, he'd take care of things. As it grew late he basically announced that he was going home and that Frank was coming too. Frank was about to protest, saying he was fine to go to his own apartment, but Joe just said "Humor me, wouldya?" Frank took one look at his father, hoping for some back up, but it took half a second to realize that Fenton was squarely behind Joe in this. He gave in, albeit a little snidely.

Back at Joe's apartment, they flipped for the bed. Frank won. Joe grabbed a spare blanket and pillow form the closet and said goodnight to his brother. Both men slept soundly, although Joe had stayed up a few extra hours to make sure Frank was resting quietly. He also got up earlier, which suited him just fine as he made some calls as soon it was a civilized hour to do business. He was busy making french toast when Frank plodded into the tiny kitchen, lured by the smell of fresh brewed coffee. He poured himself a cup and after taking one sip exclaimed "Wow.. this is great! What's the secret?"

"Navy style. Strong with a dash of cinnamon and a pinch of nutmeg. Learned it from my DIVO. The man had coffee instead of blood in his veins." Joe tipped 4 slices of french toast onto a plate and slid it over to Frank. "Bacon's keeping warm in the oven." They ate in companionable silence until Joe said "I'm gonna take a shower. Dishes are on you, but we are taking a ride when I am done." When Frank asked where they were going, Joe refused to say.

Joe showered and was soon presentable. He drove purposefully through town until he came to a small office building that held a few various medical practices. Frank began to suspect something was going on when Joe did not even pause to look at the directory but strode immediately to the elevator and pushed the up Button. When the door swished open, he gestured for Frank to precede him in. "Where are we going?" Frank growled.

"I made you an appointment with an old friend of mine." was the reply.

Frank began to sputter indignantly as they approached the office and he read the name on the door. "You have no right.." only to be cut off by Joe's abrupt stop and dagger stare.

"My turn to be the obnoxious busy body. Suck it up and deal. You need this even if you don't wanna admit it yet." Joe stopped just shy of opening the door. "Please, Frank. You scared the hell out of me the other night. I am _worried_ about you. " Joe pleaded.

Frank swallowed his reply and allowed Joe to continue. He approached the matronly older woman at the reception desk who looked up and greeted Joe with a smile. "Why hello there! So nice to see you again, dear. How are you doing?"

"Just peachy, thanks. But if you'll notice, the appointment is for him" and Joe jerked his thumb behind him towards his brother, who was glowering in the background. "Of course, I will just let the doctor know you are here."

it was only a couple of minutes before the receptionist led the two men into the doctor's office. Dr Suitland rose from behind his desk and greeted Joe with a handshake. "So nice to see you. I hope there's nothing wrong?" he inquired.

"Nope. At least not with me. _This time_." Joe laughed self depreciatingly. "Can I talk to you for half a sec?" Puzzled, the Psychologist looked from his former patient to the older brother who was the source of so much of Joe's anger and angst from the shooting over a year ago. "Certainly, Joseph."

They moved over to the entry back to the reception area where they spoke in hushed tones for several minutes. Joe occasionally glancing over at his brother with a worried frown. Frank, for his part studiously ignored both of them. Finally the doctor nodded, and shook Joe's hand. "I'll be back in an hour to pick you up, Frank. Please, let him help. If he can fix a hopeless case like me, he can fix you, too." Joe's voice caught and he abruptly strode out of the room as if to avoid a breakdown in public.

Dr Suitland indicated that Frank should make himself comfortable. "Well, Frank, do you know why Joe has asked me to help you?"

"Not a clue and no offense, Doctor, but I fail to see what you can say to convince me otherwise."

"Joe suggested I ask you a single question first. If you still feel that way after, then you are free to go."

Frank shrugged. "Ask."

"Who is Mike?"

Frank, who had still been standing as he was fully prepared to walk out the door, turned deathly pale and felt his legs buckle beneath him. He sat down heavily and came dangerously close to hyperventilating. In fact he was in shock. Dr Suitland dialed the reception desk and said "Mary, could you bring in a bottle of water for my patient, please? And cancel my next appointment. I have a feeling this one is going to run long."

**A/n: **_one more chapter before we move on to bigger and better things. Before you ask, no the next chapter will not divulge who Mike is. you'll just have to wait for my next story to find that out. I'm rotten that way._


	9. Chapter 9

**A/n: **_ okay so I lied a smidge. Joe and Fenton do find out who Mike is. but you don't. at least not yet_

**Chapter 9**

Joe spent the next hour on the phone with his father, Mr Frisk and Agent Reeves of the FBI who had been called in to handle Danny's kidnapping. It was easier to shove his worry about Frank into a tiny compartment of his brain while he was brainstorming with the others. Reeves was intrigued by Joe's theory and promised to do some research using some of the criteria that had been discussed, such as the non threatening ransom notes. Joe soon found that the hour was almost up, so he hung up and made his way back into Dr Suitland's waiting room. The receptionist told him that the session was running a little late.

At first this was no big deal, his own sessions with Dr S had occasionally run over as well, mostly because he had a tendency to ramble and not make a whole lotta sense, not even to himself. But as the minutes ticket by, Joe began to pace the large airy reception area. Mary tried to studiously ignore the increasingly agitated blond but was rapidly reaching the end of her patience as well. She was spared any impending showdown when the door to the inner office finally opened. Joe whirled and stopped short in shock at his brother's face. It had a haunted quality to it that sent a chill down his spine. Whoever Mike was, Joe decided, it was a good thing he was already dead. Otherwise, Joe would have killed him for causing such agony in his brother.

Frank was silent as they returned to the SUV. Joe was also noncommittal, only asking what Frank wanted for lunch. He ended up getting subs and decided while he was in line exactly how to tackle the next phase of the plan. He was going to show Frank how it should have been done, when their roles were reversed. He was going to be Frank's brother. Not a babysitter. Not a mother hen. None of the things that so annoyed him when he was the one in pain. So what if Frank's wasn't physical. Emotional pain was worse. Joe knew that intimately. And so Joe found himself driving a long unused but well remembered route to Barmet Bay. To his Thinking Place.

This cliff above the Bay, with it's large rock outcropping, had saved his soul when Iola died. "The sound of the waves helps" he said in response to Franks unvoiced question, and handed his brother a Sweet Onion Teriyaki sub. They ate in silence. Just listening to the waves.

After their hunger had been satisfied, Joe cleaned up the remains and then quietly, gently, placed his hand on his brother's. "When you are ready, I'll be there." He got up and walked back to the SUV. He sat in the car a long time, alone. He let Frank decide when he was ready to come and sit beside him. He was there so long that he had fallen asleep when Frank finally opened the passenger side door and slipped in.

"Where to?" Joe asked blandly. "your place, mine, the office or the 'rents?"

Franks voice was ragged, he had obviously been crying as his eyes were red although dry at this point. "My place."

"Okay." he started the SUV and drove back into town towards Frank's apartment. Chet was out of town that week, having some family reunion or other to attend, so the place was empty. "Want me to stay?" Joe left the decision entirely up to Frank, placing no expectations one way or the other. He was determined to do and be only what Frank wanted him to at that moment.

"I..I want to be alone right now, Joe." He said this half fearfully, fully expecting his brother to protest. But he was surprised when Joe merely said "Okay. I'm heading over to the house. I need to do laundry. Will probably stay for dinner. Cell phone is charged. Call me if you need to. No matter what time it is." Joe headed towards the front door, stopped, turned, swiftly crossed the room, grabbed his brother's face between his hands and gave him a piercing look. "I meant it. Whenever you are ready, I will listen. No matter what, Frank. Just remember, I am an impatient bastard so don't take too long." He pulled Frank into a rough embrace, held him fiercely for a long minute then let him go and strode out the door in one lithe movement.

Joe took his sweet time driving across town to his own apartment, figuring he needed to gather his own thoughts before facing his parents. Grabbing the laundry basket that was overflowing, he was shortly at his boyhood home. Laura was mildly surprised that only one son had shown up on her doorstep, but accepted Joe's explanation that Frank wanted to rest quietly. Joe spent a few minutes in the basement sorting darks from whites and then hung out in the kitchen keeping his mother company while she was finishing a pineapple upside down cake for the evening's dessert. At one point he tentatively broached the subject of Frank's hospitalization, not sure how much his Father had told her.

Laura paused, a smudge of flower across her nose as she wiped her face. "Your father said that he became violent. And that they made him stay in the hospital for psychiatric observation." she was calm, but the tightness around her eyes betrayed her concern.

Joe nodded. "Yeah. He was really out of it when he woke up after I got there. Kept raving about some guy named Mike." Joe deliberately left out the details.

"Mike?" Laura mused. "That name sounds familiar."

"It does?" Joe spluttered, trying hard to contain his excitement. "Dad was certain it wasn't a client."

"No, dear. A friend of your brother's though, I think. He used to mention him a lot when he was first in college." Laura paused, considering. "Oh! I know! he was Frank's first roommate at NYU."

Joe was ecstatic. Finally, a break! "I don't suppose you ever knew the last name, Mom?"

"Hmm, Donnely, Donaldson...Wait! Donovan! Mike Donovan! I am sure of it!" She proclaimed.

Joe leaped up, knocking the kitchen chair over as he did so. He grabbed his mother around the waist and lifted her up in a great big hug. " You are _definitely_ the greatest mother in the history of the universe!" and he left her catching her breath as he raced upstairs to the old office. He was soon typing away on the computer. While it was no longer a work related PC, Joe used his recently honed Googling skills and within an hour had an extensive history. One that ended with a death certificate dated over 7 years ago. He was still going over the information he had dug up when his father knocked on the door.

"Joe? Dinner's about ready."

"I have it Dad!" he half shouted. "I know who Mike is!"

Fenton was amazed. "How did you find out? Did Frank tell you?"

Joe shook his head in the negative. "Nope. Mom knew the name!" he sobered. "I know how he died, too." he passed over a few printed pages, newspaper articles mostly. Fenton spent a minute skimming over the information.

"What are you going to do with this, Son?" Fenton asked soberly.

Joe grew pensive. "Nothing. When Frank is ready to tell me, he will."

Fenton was a little surprised at the newfound maturity of his younger son. "Are you sure, Joe? You have a reputation for being, shall we say..impatient."

"I know. But I learned something in that mine shaft, Dad. Being the Big Brother is hard work. Especially for somebody like me." he smiled a bit self consciously. "And I think I have a pretty good idea of what pushed Frank over the edge. I owe him." This last was said in a whisper.

The sound of Laura's voice impatiently reminding them that dinner was getting cold put a hiatus on anything further Fenton was going to say. But after dinner, he asked Joe if he could keep the printouts and take a closer look. Joe was fine with that. He soon departed for his apartment with half a pineapple upside down cake and clean laundry. Fenton spent the rest of the evening going over the information Joe had dug up and before long had made a few phone calls of his own and gotten even more. By the end of the night he had a full accounting. And what he had discovered chilled his soul.

_To be continued in There But for the Grace of God. _


End file.
